Lisa D’Amato, a winner of America’s Next Top Model, believes Tyra Banks is attempting to soften the impact of her controversial past through an upcoming Netflix documentary. D’Amato suggests that actions once deemed acceptable on the show may not hold up to today’s standards.

D’Amato, originally from Los Angeles, competed alongside Banks during the fifth cycle of America’s Next Top Model in 2005. She later returned to triumph in the All Stars edition in 2011.

In a conversation with Page Six, D’Amato expressed skepticism about Banks’ motives behind the new documentary, titled “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model.” D’Amato stated, “To preserve her reputation and future earnings, Tyra will need to take some responsibility.”

D’Amato speculated that Banks might only acknowledge a small fraction of her past behavior, estimating it at “about 5 percent.”

Set to premiere on Netflix this Monday, the documentary promises an “eye-opening” exploration of the reality show’s complex history. The series will include interviews with Banks, as well as insights from various models, judges, and insiders associated with the show.

It will feature interviews with Banks, as well as a number of the show’s models, judges and insiders.

D’Amato admit she’s concerned that Banks’ past admitted wrongdoings linked to the TV series will be ‘manipulated’ and ‘softened’ in an effort to reset the narrative.

America’s Next Top Model winner Lisa D’Amato says she thinks Tyra Banks is using her forthcoming Netflix documentary to try and minimize past bad behavior that would have her canceled by contemporary standards 

D’Amato on Instagram said that she’s heard Banks ‘has a heavy hand in the creative’ aspect of the forthcoming doc, and will likely spin things to benefit her image 

D’Amato told the outlet she’ll be paying close attention to what former contestants on the series say.

‘I know their true experience and how much it affected their lives, so I’ll be watching it more to see how that gets portrayed and edited,’ D’Amato told the outlet.

D’Amato added further comments about the upcoming doc on Instagram, saying that she’s heard Banks ‘has a heavy hand in the creative’ aspect of the forthcoming doc, and will likely spin things to benefit her image.

In previews for the special, Banks said she ‘knew [she] went too far’ with aspects of America’s Next Top Model. 

Banks in the doc said that she was  trying to give TV viewers what they wanted during a time when edginess was prevalent in mainstream culture.

‘It was very, very intense,’ Banks said. ‘But you guys were demanding it, so we kept pushing more and more and more.’

D’Amato told the outlet there was another motivating factor for Banks in admitting past mistakes: profit.

‘Tyra’s all about making money,’ D’Amato said. ‘She doesn’t have any real empathy for anybody else but herself.’

Banks in the doc said that she was trying to give TV viewers what they wanted during a time when edginess was prevalent in mainstream culture 

D’Amato said of Banks, ‘I don’t trust anything she touches’

‘Ultimately, my own intuition tells me from my own experience – which is very deep, and it’s been many years – that this is a money grab for Tyra’ so she’s ‘not 100 percent canceled.’

D’Amato, who has more than 264,000 followers on her primary Instagram account, is appearing on a rival documentary for E! titled Dirty Rotten Scandals. It debuts March 11.

In a preview for the special, D’Amato suggested that ANTM was more ‘psychological warfare’ than a proper ‘modeling competition.’

She said in the clip: ‘I trusted you with my dreams. How dare you take my f***ing life away from me.’

D’Amato said on her Instagram that she was ‘just doing God’s work’ in speaking out against injustice.

She added, ‘Stand for something or fall for anything.’

Daily Mail has reached out to D’Amato and reps for Banks for comment in response to the latest round of remarks.  

D’Amato pictured as she was announced winner of America’s Next Top Model: All Stars in 2011

D’Amato is currently residing in Southwestern Europe caring for her ailing father, who is battling Type 2 Diabetes and multiple sclerosis 

D’Amato is currently residing in Southwestern Europe caring for her ailing father, who is battling Type 2 Diabetes and multiple sclerosis.

She told Daily Mail in 2025 that she and her father ventured overseas they ‘as medical refugees’ thinking he could get better healthcare there than in the states.

‘My dad was not well – I took him out of the U.S. and he’s thriving,’ D’Amato said. ‘The USA was basically eating him alive and made my dad like a vegetable while robbing him blind. 

‘Since moving my family – I guess it’s the new American dream to get out of the United States!’